Photo courtesy of englishcottagerental.com

? There is just under three weeks to go to the celebrations between the 2nd June and 5th June of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. Events are being held throughout Britain with street parties galore and as it is an extended bank holiday, many people will be taking a longer break as well.


If you are hiring a car don’t forget your car hire excess insurance. There is a lot going on at the insurance4carrental.com site now. Apart from the choice of four car hire companies. One company currently celebrating it’s 25th birthday – Holiday Autos plus Carrentals, Economy Car Hire and Rentalcars. You can also arrange Motorhome hire and Van hire via Holiday Autos.

Buying your car hire (or van or motorhome hire) excess insurance is a lot cheaper by buying it direct from one of the advertisers on the insurance4carrental.com site than from an individual car hire company so most of these companies say.


Excess insurance is an add on that you should take out when you rent a vehicle. Somethings you can do without like a Sat Nav GSM, but you can’t do without that excess insurance. There are 9 Car hire excess insurance companies to choose from plus 2 Van hire and 2 for Motorhome hire excess insurance and one offering excess insurance for 9 seater minibuses.


So who are these companies advertising on the insurance4carrental.com site?


For car hire excess insurance the very long established leader insurance4carhire.com (who have some special prices for visitors to the insurance4carrental site) carhireexcess.com, Questor Insurance (who also have some special prices for visitors to the insurance4carrental site), Worldwideinsure, iCarhireinsurance, Dailyexcess.com (part of insurance4carhire) Essential Travel Insurance, Protectyourbubble and Odyssey Insurance.

For the motorhome hire business there is Worlwideinsure and Questor Insurance. Van hire excess insurance is covered by insuremyvanhire.com (part of insurance4carhire group) and iCarhireinsurance.


Finally for 9 seater minibus hire there is iCarhireinsurance. Hopefully other insurance companies will enter that part of the market and for slightly larger minibuses.

If you book your car hire now you should ensure there are vehicles available. After visiting one car hire depot yesterday in the south of England you never want to leave it till the last minute. They only had 3 rental cars and 1 rental van on the premises.


Plan ahead for the weekend and also buy your excess insurance in advance.

A friend of mine is hiring a car later this week and bought car hire excess insurance from insurance4carhire.

He has just sent me an email from the company offering a few tips for his trip.

They suggest the following:

Your Driving Licence



British licence holders should note that many car hire outlets will not release the rental vehicle on sight of a photocard driving licence without also seeing the paper licence counterpart.

They may also ask to see the paper licence counterpart of all named drivers.
?
Credit Card

The person renting the vehicle must have a credit card. Most car rental companies will not accept debit or switch cards, or cash.
?
Excess – What to Do

We cover Excess on CDW and Theft as well as damage to: undercarriage, roof, windows and tyres. Decline the car rental company’s Excess at the counter. You do not need to show them your policy.

If you have any damage to the vehicle you will be charged, and then you claim for reimbursement.
?
Claims



You should notify our claims management company within 31 days. Your Policy documentation gives full details of how to claim.

That is allvery useful information for his overseas car rental.

If you are thinking of hiring a car insurance4carhire.com advertise their products on the insurance4carrental.com site.

By going through the insurance4carrental.com site you can save money as the Europe Annual £39.20 per year?and? the Annual Worldwide Excess cover – 31 days per car rental agreement is only £52.00

More information Here

For a short break or business trip take a look at Insurance4carhire’s Daily Excess Reimbursement Insurance is £4.75 a day ideal for trips of 7 days or less More information Here

So if you are going away this weekend and renting?a car, don’t leave home without your car hire excess insurance.?

Celebrating 25 years of great value car hire, the 25% sale is a way to treat both long-standing and new customers alike to substantial discounts on car hire over the summer. With 25% off available on rentals until 31 October, you can make sure you don’t miss out on saving money on those much needed breaks later in the year too.

The first week of the sale will feature popular family favourites such as Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Madeira and Malta, while those heading down under can take advantage of 25% off car hire in Sydney and Melbourne. Closer-to-home city breaks in Geneva and Toulouse will also prove value for money this week, and for those looking for something a bit different, car hire in Iceland’s Keflavik will also enjoy the anniversary discount this Friday.

Tue 1 May Geneva | Wed 2 May Sydney, Melbourne | Thu 3 May Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria | Fri 4 May Iceland (Keflavik) | Sat 5 May Madeira, Malta | Sun 6 May Toulouse



The car hire sale runs until 25 May so look out for?announcements of further destinations!


The car hire sale launches on 1 May and runs until 25 May 2012, and offers all customers the chance to save 25% on all selected cars in different locations each day for an exclusive 24 hour period only.



Isabelle Ratinaud, MD of Holiday Autos says “We’ve seen a huge amount of evolution in car hire over the 25 years we’ve been in business and thought it was only right to celebrate with an extra special offer. Hopefully our anniversary sale will encourage more people to explore and enjoy their holiday destination this year, be it sunny beach breaks or cultural city getaways”.



Full details of the sale, with a list of all sale locations and the terms and conditions applicable can be found at holidayautos

Holiday Autos is the world’s largest car hire broker operating in over 5,000 locations around the world. Working with partners including Avis, Alamo, Europcar, Sixt, Hertz, National, Thrifty and Budget, holiday autos offers competitively priced car hire and a high level of service to all its customers. As well car hire, holiday autos also offers campervan hire, van hire, prestige and hybrid car hire as well as chauffeur drive services through its consumer website.? -? Source Holiday Autos

Just had a very seasonal e-flyer in from Carrentals reminding us all that it is only 100 days till the 2012 London Olympics get going.

They are reminding us now if we need car hire we should book it much sooner rather than later to get the best deals on wheels about.

According to a press release Carrentals have issued today…

Carrentals is urging US visitors travelling to the Olympics to book their car rentals early, avoiding disappointment, as the latest statistics show a significant increase in car rental bookings in key UK locations around the dates of the 2012 Olympics.




The figures from Carrentals.co.uk reveal six times more US customers have already booked car rental in the UK for pick up between 20 July and 12 August this year compared with the same time last year, highlighting the popularity of Americans hiring a car for the London 2012 Olympics. The statistics also show 40% of the customers will pick up their car rental from either Gatwick or Heathrow airports, providing easy access to London for the opening ceremony and events to follow.



Bookings for 20 and 21 July have proved popular, with many customers deciding to join in the excitement for the run-up to the opening ceremony taking place 27 July. Customers have opted to rent their cars for an average 10-12 days for these dates, with 50% of the pick up locations being Gatwick and Heathrow airports.

Managing Director of Carrentals.co.uk, Gareth Robinson, says: “Our figures show a clear increase in car rental bookings around the time of the Olympics and this is likely to increase further as we get closer to the games. The UK really is the place to be this summer with many Americans making the 2012 Olympics their summer holiday.


“Train journeys can be expensive and are likely to be very busy during the games – possibly not ideal for families and larger groups. The option of renting a car gives more flexibility, especially when travelling to different events either in London or around the UK. Those booking early can make significant savings while having a wider choice of vehicles and essential extras such as child seats and sat navs.”


Carrentals.co.uk is a leading car rental comparison site, comparing deals from up to 50 rental companies including Alamo, Auto Europe, Budget, Holiday Autos and Sixt, in over 15,000 locations worldwide.

Looks like you had better book today….

Go to the Carrrentals web site by following this link

The Easter weekend has just ended and many people buying car hire excess insurance have benefited from the discounted Europe Car Hire Excess insurance that costs £49.00, but is discounted to £39.20 through a link at the insurance4carrental.com site.The product comes from insurance4carhire.

In April 2011?there were some 13 sales, this April, 2012?there have been 14 so far till the 9th April. In March 36 customers benefited from the reduced price.

If you are thinking of hiring a car remember you can also buy this product in advance. So for example if you are renting in June, buy your excess insurance today.

For more information follow this link

The Independent on Sunday on the 1st April 2012 ran a story “New Orleans: Where every building tells a story – The French Quarter of the city was moulded by its history of piracy, slavery, royalty – and ghosts”

A very interesting article by The Independent on Sunday’s?correspondent Adrian Mourby. It was reporting on the fact that French Quarter Festival starts on the?12th April features some 800 local musicians and is a little bit less lively than Mardi Gras that happened earlier in the year.

Apprarently you don’t want to visit it there in mid summer as the temperatures are very hot. I spent a week there last May, towards the end of the month. The temperature was perefect and staying in the Hotel Chateau Bourbon?in the French Quarter was excellent. If you do stay there try and book? courtyard room as the ones facing out towards Bourbon Street can be noisy. The hotel has an outside swimming pool (and according to the website is currently closed till the 15th May).

Under Travel essentials in the article, they were suggesting Holiday Autos. Apparently they?offer a week’s car hire from £216. You need to check their website HERE.

You won’t need a car for just wandering around central New Orleans listening to Jazz being played in bars, clubs and out in the street. Everything is very compact, however if you want to go further out of the area (past the Streetcar routes) you can go exploring the Plantations and even the Swamps in Louisiana.

Do make sure you take plenty of sun protection cream as many of the boats on the tours have no roof or shade.

Finally a trip to New Orleans has to include a trip on the?Mississippi River in a traditional paddle steamer.

Talking of the Mighty Mississippi River a new ITV 3 part documentary series with Sir Trevor McDonald starts next Tuesday April 10th on ITV1.

iCarhireinsurance.com the Car Hire Excess Insurance and Van Hire Excess Insurance company reported yesterday that “The Times” newspaper in the UK published iCarhireinsurance.com research this weekend (31 March 2012) in an article advising consumers on the best ways to avoid ‘expensive holiday pitfalls’.


In a section on Car Hire Traps, it said: “Times Money is constantly inundated with complaints about hire companies and the extra charges levied to catch out tired holidaymakers collecting their cars after a long flight”.


Exactly we couldn’t have said it better the iCarhireinsurance blog said. And the worst culprit? “The most expensive is excess insurance,” said Laura Whateley, money reporter for The Times. “This is useful for peace of mind, but is expensive when bought directly from car hire companies.”

And the paper’s top tip? “Consider buying it in advance from a third party instead. According to a survey by iCarhireinsurance.com…the five leading car hire companies charge an average of £17 a day for excess waiver insurance, and some as much as £23. “Independent insurance, on the other hand, can cost just a few pounds a day, or about £30 – £40 annually”.iCarhireinsurance are doing well with coverage in the News International group in the UK in the past few weeks. On the 16th March they were mentioned in The Sun.

Want to find out more about iCarhireinsurance’s products? Of course you must with Easter just a few days away and you could be hiring a car or van. Follow this link?

It is only just over a week now till the Easter weekend and I have just received this e-flyer from Holiday Autos.

They say “If you’re planning an Easter break, don’t miss out on our great rates in popular locations. Availability is tightening up in key destinations, but we still fare well against our competitors. But hurry, with car hire prices from just £6 per day, our cars go quick. Book now to avoid disappointment “

Holiday Autos has a wide choice of cars from companies like Europcar – Budget – Sixt – Record Go and Thrifty car hire

Easter 2012 is only under 10 days away and many people will be setting off on their breaks this coming weekend although with this fine spring weather in the south of England it feels like it has already begun.

The shops have their Easter displays like this one in Belgium to the left so if you have booked your car hire, don’t forget your car hire excess insurance. The supermarkets have been selling chocolate eggs and hot cross buns for many weeks now. Some start soon after Christmas!

You can save a lot of money by buying it from an independent insurance company and whatsmore, if you are likely to travel a couple of times a year you save even more with an annual policy.

Some insurance4carhire and Questor insurance policies are still being discounted if you buy them from the link you find?on the insurance4carrental.com site.??

Many people go on holiday around Easter hiring a motorhome and Questor and Worlwideinsure offer motorhome excess insurance. Find out more here.

If you are still looking for a bargain in the never ending sales and are staying at home, but renting a van remember you can also buy van hire excess insurance independently that will save you even more money to spend in the shops. Insuremyvanhire and iCarhireinsurance both offer this product. Find out more here???

Ah, but on the contrary my car hire friends, there is something he could have done. It is what I like to call the “pre-hire inspection.” What is it? It is exactly what is sounds like. An inspection of the vehicle before you drive out of the parking lot. It is simple and will save you (could have saved my friend) a lot of money. The task is simple! Just take about 5 minutes before you drive the car to look it over for any signs of damage. Check inside and out and if you find a defect, say some damage to the bumper, you need to alert the car hire company BEFORE you leave the parking lot. This way you will not have to pay for the damage caused by another driver. Furthermore, some of the dishonest car hire companies may diliberatly leave part of the car damaged and charge every drive for the repair. Do not fall victim to this scam. Easily protect yourself with the pre-hire inspection. You should also make sure the gas tank is full before you drive away. If they require the tank to be full upon return, you MUST require the tank is full at departure. Save money and stress with the pre-hire inspection.